BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 852
Page 1
Date of Hearing: March 29, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Marty Block, Chair
AB 852 (Fong) - As Amended: March 21, 2011
SUBJECT : Public postsecondary education: community colleges:
temporary faculty.
SUMMARY : Establishes reemployment rights for temporary
California Community College (CCC) faculty, based on specified
criteria. Specifically, this bill :
1)Establishes findings and declarations regarding the numbers of
temporary faculty, the importance of a stable and
knowledgeable workforce, and the importance of a secure pool
of part-time faculty. Finds the intent of this act is to
provide CCC with a pool of faculty that have proven to be
assets to the CCC and its students.
2)Requires, as of July 1, 2012, temporary faculty employed in a
CCC for at least four of the preceding eight semesters (or six
of the preceding 12 quarters) and whose last evaluation was
satisfactory to have the right of first refusal for an
assignment in that district which the faculty has performed in
the preceding eight semesters (or 12 quarters). Establishes
that in cases where two or more temporary faculty members have
the same claim, the assignment shall be offered in order of
seniority.
3)Provides that a temporary faculty member may be denied the
right of first refusal for just cause, requires the faculty
member to be notified in writing of the just cause, and
provides the faculty member due process rights to challenge
the denial. Provides that "just cause" includes, but is not
limited to, giving the assignment to a more senior faculty
member, failure of a faculty member to timely request the
assignment if required by the district, or the decision not to
offer the assignment because of low enrollment, funding, or
program changes.
4)Provides that the right of first refusal granted by this bill
shall not be construed as "reasonable assurance" of employment
for purposes of unemployment compensation eligibility between
academic terms.
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5)Provides temporary faculty an entitlement to any greater
rights than those provided in this bill if provided in a
collective bargaining agreement or otherwise provided by a
district.
EXISTING LAW expresses Legislative intent and makes Legislative
findings and declarations regarding temporary faculty, including
that, whenever possible, CCC temporary faculty be compensated
appropriately and extended certain professional privileges and
requires the issue of earning and retaining reappointment rights
for temporary faculty be a mandatory subject of negotiation with
respect to collective bargaining of new or successor contracts
between CCC districts and temporary faculty.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Background : For over 20 years, the Legislature has
considered various efforts to address the issue of CCC districts
hiring temporary (part-time) faculty members in lieu of
full-time faculty. Hiring an instructor on a part-time basis
usually cost substantially less than a full-time faculty member,
and also provides the CCC flexibility in a time of rapid change.
While the issue remains a major area of debate, many believe
students are under-served by a lack of permanent faculty, who
are more accessible and may have more teaching expertise in core
curriculum. Additionally, there are numerous equity concerns
surrounding temporary faculty. Several studies on CCC temporary
faculty found that CCC districts pay temporary faculty
significantly less than full-time faculty performing the same
duties, and nearly half of temporary faculty reported not
receiving any type of benefits from their CCC district.
CCC district reemployment policies : AB 1245 (Alquist), Chapter
850, Statutes of 2001, required the issue of reappointment
rights for temporary faculty be a subject of negotiation during
collective bargaining and provided that reappointment rights may
be based on whatever factors are agreed to by both parties.
Many districts have established reappointment rights policies
under existing law. These policies vary in specifics, and it is
unclear how many of these policies are in conflict with the
provisions of this bill. For example, Grossmont-Cuyamaca
Community College District's (GCCCD) reemployment policy
provides course-specific reemployment preference. At GCCCD,
once a temporary faculty member has taught a course eight times,
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that individual has the right to be offered that course
assignment prior to someone with less preference, no preference,
or a new hire. This bill would establish a uniform practice
among CCC districts regarding reemployment rights, requiring
faculty assignment decisions be based primarily on seniority.
Purpose of this bill : According to the author, the growing
trend in California is that full-time tenured faculty at CCC are
diminishing and being replaced by part-time temporary faculty.
California's 43,000 CCC part-time faculty members represent
nearly two-thirds of all CCC faculty, teaching 40% of the CCC
classes. Yet, according to the California Federation of
Teachers, this temporary workforce is poorly compensated and
lacks basic supports and benefits. The flexibility to negotiate
reemployment policies at each CCC district has resulted in
unfair and unreliable reemployment practices in some CCC
districts. Additionally, many temporary faculty create
full-time teaching schedules through employment in two or more
CCC districts. The various differences in reemployment policies
in these CCC districts make it difficult for temporary faculty
to plan their upcoming teaching schedules. By establishing a
more uniform reemployment policy, this bill will ensure fair
reemployment practices that increase stability for temporary
faculty and the students they serve.
Just cause for denial : This bill authorizes a CCC district to
deny the right of first refusal to a faculty member for "just
cause" which is defined in the bill to "include, but is not
limited to" issues surrounding seniority, failure of faculty to
request the assignment, or decisions not to offer the course.
The definition for "just cause" is open-ended but, according to
supporters, would likely include issues of faculty incompetency
as determined by an evaluation, questionable educational
credentials, accusations of misconduct, inability to follow
course outlines, or inability to turn in census or grades. The
author may wish to consider requiring the CCC Chancellor's
Office to promulgate regulations surrounding appropriate
rationales for "just cause".
Arguments in opposition : The Community College League of
California notes that many of California's 72 CCC districts have
collective bargaining agreements that include some form of
preference rights for temporary faculty, although may differ in
specifications, details, process, and how rights are earned.
The League argues that mandated terms for right of refusal as
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specified in this bill could be inconsistent with the number and
schedule of courses at each college, which vary depending on
programmatic and student educational needs, and fiscal
challenges faced by a college district. The League argues that
implications of criteria could be especially difficult for
multiple college districts and small rural districts.
Technical amendment : A technical amendment is needed on page 2,
line 19 to reverse the order of the words "temporary" and
"faculty".
Prior Legislation : AB 1807 (Fong) of 2010, which was
substantially similar to this bill, was approved by this
Committee and subsequently held on the suspense file in the
Assembly Appropriations Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Federation of Teachers (sponsor)
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges (sponsor)
Opposition
Community College League of California
Analysis Prepared by : Laura Metune / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960